Johanna and Sami's Eighth Dream Home
Johanna Katajisto and Sami Kannusmäki don’t build houses because there’s anything wrong with the old ones. They do it because they love building. Their latest log home is already their eighth single-family home project, and once again they have something unique on their hands: a home bordering on perfection, combining Ollikainen logs, a bold interior design style, and an uncompromising vision.
For the love of creating and building
The couple has been building houses as a hobby for years. Each house has served as a testing ground for new ideas. The nearly 200-square-meter log house, completed in 2022, initially felt like a permanent home, but soon the urge to build struck again.
The new house will be completed by summer 2025 in Tampere, just a few dozen kilometers from our current home in Kangasala.
The Charm of Log Walls
Johanna and Sami have built their last four homes using Ollikainen laminated logs. The new house features non-settling laminated logs, which represent the latest advancement in log construction.
The house, built on a hillside lot, is a two-story structure: the ground floor is constructed of Leca blocks, but the main living areas are housed within a log frame. The ground floor features a sauna, a utility room, and a fitness area. The upstairs contains the parents’ bedroom and the bedroom of their 8-year-old daughter, Veela.
Collaboration between an architect and an interior designer
The building’s architecture was designed by Memmu Pitkänen / Ideaa Design of Tampere. Memmu is known both as an architect and an interior designer, and her work has been featured in numerous housing fair projects.
The open staircase with glass railings, situated in the center of the building, transforms the living-dining-kitchen area into a space filled with light and openness. There is a separate outbuilding in the entrance courtyard, and a wide terrace wraps around three sides of the main building.
The lot is just over 1,000 square meters, and the black log house stands out among the stone houses in the neighborhood.
Interior design is my passion
Johanna is in charge of interior design for the family’s projects, and it has become a true passion of hers. Dark tones dominate the home’s overall look, creating a warm and stylish atmosphere. The black vinyl ceiling in the living room reflects light like a mirror and makes the ceiling feel boundless. The materials were supplied by the Estonian company Vecta Design.
Although vinyl roofs are typically seen on stone houses, this home proves that they are also a perfect fit for log homes.
Classic style with a modern twist
Johanna’s interior design combines classic elegance with a modern edge. The kitchen is the heart of the home and the focal point of the interior. It features cabinets from Gastro Keittiöt, and at the end of the long island are decorative bar stools that were brought over from a friend’s home to this new one.
In the living room, the eye is drawn to a tiled tower that houses a biofireplace and a television. The striking tiles for the tower were sourced from Caisla, while other tiles were purchased from Netrauda and stores in Estonia.
The floors upstairs are covered with large tiles, while downstairs you walk on herringbone-patterned vinyl. The log walls have been stained a warm brown, and a stylish black was chosen for the exterior, making the house an eye-catcher from the street.
Johanna and Sami's Log House in a Nutshell
Developers: Johanna Katajisto and Sami Kannusmäki
Built using Ollikainen's non-settling laminated logs
Architect: Memmu Pitkänen / Ideaa Architects
Size: nearly 200 m², 2 stories
Special features: open staircase, vinyl ceiling (Vecta Design), tiled biofireplace
Interior design: classic and bold, Gastro Kitchens, Caisla, Netrauta
Exterior color: black; warm brown log surfaces inside
Johanna and Sami’s story is proof that building can be more than just a project. It can also be a way of life. For them, every house is a new opportunity to bring their passion to life, where log construction, form, and interior design come together in perfect harmony.
